Loving Celia

STEVE'S POV

"Now that your father has finally decided it's time to retire and hand over the company to you, it's proper that you and Diana give us a grandchild soon so we can be rest assured that the dynasty of the Johnsons doesn't end with you Steve," my mother said for the umpteenth time

Trust my mother to bring up this kind of topic at such a crucial moment, she just couldn't let my wife be, I had wanted to move out after my marriage but it's strictly against the family tradition laid down by PA Godwin Johnson who happens to be my Great Great Grandfather.

The family of the son who would take over the company must reside within the mansion compulsorily. So I was stuck in this place where my mother never missed an opportunity to berate my wife for not having a child. It wasn't like she was at fault, medically we were sound but for 8 years of marriage nothing so far, not even a miscarriage.

"unless she doesn't have what it takes to make children" she added, my wife teared up and ran out of the dining heavy on tears.

"Satisfied?" I asked my mother and glanced around the table at my father, sister, and brother-in-law who said nothing rather they focused on their food as if nothing had just happened, typical of them.

"Excuse me!!" I left the table and started walking upstairs

In the corridor, I heard my mother's voice

"Steve, do not take one more step," she said with authority and I froze, I knew that tone too well and I knew better not to disobey her

"what is it, mother? Haven't you done enough?" I asked turning to face her

"If saving my son is a crime then I am guilty," she said almost in a whisper

"Saving me from what?" I almost shouted

"You wouldn't want your father hearing so I suggest you put your voice down and follow me to my study," she said in a whisper yet again and turned on her heel towards the stairs up

Her study was on the second floor, we could have taken an elevator but my mother being dramatic decided to take the stairs and I followed suit.

As we entered the study, she locked it behind me and walked to her seat, she picked up a document and stretched to me

"What is this" I asked taking the file from her and going through it. I couldn't believe my eyes I looked at my mum who was sitting relaxed in her chair with a smirk

"This is bullshit, you created this," I said

"You can take it to her for verification. Your lovely wife has no womb, she damaged her womb while having an abortion. She knew all along that she was the reason for your condition yet she kept it from you" she said still very much relaxed

"But the doctors certified us," I said almost in a whisper

"Which doctors you should ask? Ones she paid to fake the results? You don't know who you got married to, I warned you not to marry her, I told you something was fishy about her and her mother but the stubbornness you inherited from your father made you not listen now see!" she concluded now standing up

"Does father know?" I asked calmly as anger brewed in my heart

"Do you think he would have retired and left the company to you if he knew?" she asked shaking her head and walking out

I stormed out of the office and headed for my room in full rage with the paper in my hand. As I swung the door open I saw Diana crawl up on the bed in a fetal position shedding crocodile tears, as she saw me enter she lifted her face and I could see her eyes were red

"Care to explain this?" I flung the paper to her which landed on the floor, she stood up and picked it up, and looking at it I saw her eyes widen

"Baby, I can explain," she said cleaning her eyes with the back of her palm

"Explain?" I chuckled " What do you want to say? That you aborted my child all those years ago which led to this complication or that you kept me in the dark? Or where you having an affair behind me?" I screamed

We were occupying the penthouse so literally no one would hear unless within the corridors of the penthouse

"No baby, I never cheated on you. Let me explain" she said

"You have nothing to explain, you disgust me" I walked out of the room banging on the door, I used the elevator down to the hallway, as I passed I glanced at the dining to see everyone still sitting and interacting cheerfully, I felt so pissed and edited the house

I picked up the first car key I spotted at the garage and pressed the open button to see which one it was for and the rear lights of the Porsche blinked, I walked up to the car got in, and drove off to one of the clubs I own downtown

DIANA'S POV

"How did this happen? How did Steve know about the abortion? This has to be Adrianna's doing! Only two people knew about the abortion, My Mother and Laura our family doctor" I thought to myself as Steve left me standing in our room

I picked up my phone and dialed my mum's line, she picked up on the first ring

"Hello baby girl, how are you?" mum asked

"Mummy I am finished!" I said in tears

"Calm down baby girl and tell me what's going on?"

"Mum Steve found out about the abortion"

"What? How?" she asked

"My guess is Adriana"

"How did Adriana find out?"

"Beats me, mum, beats me"

"Did you confess everything to Steve?"

"Not yet mum, he stormed off after accusing me of aborting his baby, he even considered that the child may not have been his hence my decision to abort"

"Good, we can still fix this, you need a believable story that will draw sympathy to you"

"How do you mean mum?"

"You will tell Steve you were raped"

"Mum!!"

"What? Do you want to lose your marriage? Do you want your father to lose face in the next election?"

"No mummy"

"Good, we need that family's support for your father's political ambition to chair the Medical Association, so you need to remain in that family"

"Yes, mum!"

"Remember the robbery that took place at our house that year?"

"Yes Mum"

"You will tell him that you were raped by Armed robbers that day, we did not report it so that your father won't find out and the news wouldn't go viral, you got pregnant as a result and I advised you to abort, so your father doesn't find out and that's where the procedure went south and we had to choose between saving your life or losing you, so we chose to save your life hence the removal of your womb"

"You are a genius mum, what a perfect story, and Steve will believe it because he is a very soft-hearted man"

"Exactly, meanwhile I will find out how Adriana got to know about this and how much she knows"

"Thanks, Mum. What would I have done without you?"

"Nothing my darling," she said chuckling as I smiled to myself

"So wipe your tears your mother got your back, you wouldn't lose your home under my watch. I will put Adriana in her place soon"

"Thanks, mummy, I love you"

"I love you too my baby girl, sleep well"

She hung up, I felt relieved and went to take a shower, I knew Steve would be back by morning and I would replay all I had a rehearsal with my mother that night.

C

Celia's POV

"Table five needs a waitress," Sam said

"But I am covering more than half of the entire pub, could you assign table five to someone else?" I pleaded

"If you do not like working you can as well quit, I could get someone willing to take a minimum wage for the job" Sam replied

"Fine, I'm on it" I strode off reluctantly

This was my life, I worked the hardest at Brad's Pub yet I was receiving a misery of $20 per hour. Sam was being extremely mean because I had refused to grace his bed as he asked, I didn't care though, at least I am lucky he hadn't fired me, if I were fired how would I afford to pay my bills?

At 15, I dropped out of school to support my family, if only I had a responsible father, maybe I wouldn't have had to drop out. But my father being the drunk and gambler he was kept gambling with my tuition fee until we couldn't afford to replace it anymore, I had to stop and start helping my mother with the responsibility, I was solely taking care of my two younger siblings at 24 years, catering for my drunk of a father who owed people money at different places not minding the interests and my mother whose cleaning job was barely enough to feed one mouth.

I am currently working four jobs and I barely get four hours worth of sleep. I take on side gigs on weekends just to make extra.

I did my morning shifts at the community library from 7 am to 11 am where I made $60, I did my afternoon shifts at a Cafe from 12 noon to 4 pm and made $75.

My evening shift starts at 5 pm and till 9 pm at Brad's pub where I make $80, then finally my last shift at the A Department Store from 10 pm till 3 am and make $60

Generally, I work from 7 am till 2 am which is approximately 18 hours making over $250 per day yet I couldn't afford nice clothes. After rent, electricity, water and phone bills, school fees, Mortgage, and feeding, I barely had enough to transport me to work buy more clothes

I was running around the pub attending to all tables as if I was the only waitress on duty when I bumped into a man and the glasses in my trey fell and broke

"I am so sorry sir, I didn't see you coming"

"What did you just do? My glasses!! I will surely deduct these from your pay, do you think I run a charity organization or something, what were you doing running around like that" Sam emerged from behind screaming at me

"Please, I have family counting on my pay to survive please don't do this, it was a mistake, I promise it won't happen again" I begged to fall on my knee not minding the broken pieces on the floor

"Hey, young lady that's not necessary!" the man I bumped into held me up and started inspecting my knee before standing erect and facing Sam

"Sam put the cost on my tab, and I will pay, it was my fault anyways, I wasn't paying attention" the man pleaded on my behalf to which Sam nodded and left

"Are you okay, young lady?"

"Yes sir, I am fine, thank you so much for your help"

I bent down to pick up the pieces and throw them into my tray for disposal but he touched my shoulder.

"Get a broom instead, you might pierce your fingers," the man said friendly

"Okay sir, sorry sir"

I walked to the back with my head down, got a broom, and fixed up the place, I resumed my service gently and in a few minutes Sam came up to me

"I have assigned your tables to Maurice and Jenna, go to table 5 and sit with the customer, you are going to serve him till he leaves," he said about to walk out

"but I am not an escort Sam, I'm just a waitress, he can contact the escorts in the house for such," I said confused

"Either that or you are fired," he said and walked out

I stood fixated with my imagination running wild, I hadn't done this before, what do I do now? I can't afford to lose this job. After some seconds of thought, I gradually removed my apron and walked into the bar VIP section, I glanced around and my eyes stopped at table five, it was the gentleman I had bumped into, he sounded nice so I felt he would understand and chose another escort or waitress so I walked up to him

"Hello sir, do you need anything else?"

"I need a bottle of your finest champagne and get two glasses for us"

"I can get you your champagne sir but I'm not an escort, I can't join you, please don't turn me into one"

"Relax my dear lady, I just need company, I am not looking for an escort," he said throwing me a sincere smile

"Okay, that I can do sir. Let me get the drink and glasses"

I brought the drink and listened to him tell me his problems amidst being drunk, apparently his wife and mother were the architects of his problems, he drank until it was my closing time and I insisted on getting him a cab that would take him home before heading for my next Place of work, as I didn't trust Sam not to extort from the man since he was drunk and looked rich

I made sure I locked his car which he packed at our parking space, checked him out from the register, he asked me to put in a tip of $100 for myself which I didn't do because he was drunk and didn't know what he was doing, I asked him for his address and he gave me a hotel address.

I was sceptical about taking a drunk man to a hotel but something in me kept pushing me to trust him. I called a cab that took us there, I didn't have enough but I still paid with my money as I didn't want to search for him.

The Cab driver dropped us at this beautiful Five Star Hotel, I led him into the lobby, I thought the outside looked exquisite the interior was Superb. I spotted reception and we walked up to the desk with him staggering beside me despite my support, I was 5ft8 and 68kg by weight but he was taller and bigger, about 6ft1 and 80kg by weight or thereabout, so I couldn't completely support his weight.

"Good Evening Mr Johnson" the receptionist greeted me immediately we reached her, I could see her giving me this dirty look to which I gave her an awkward smile and greeted her.

"My key please!" he managed to slur his words out

She handed him a card which he took and staggered towards the elevator as I continued helping him, we got into the elevator and pressed the penthouse button.

"He must be filthy rich, a night here would cost a fortune and the penthouse would be more expensive to stay in," I thought to myself

The door dinged indicating we had arrived at the penthouse, we walked to the door and he placed the card to the sensor on the doorknob and it automatically opened letting us into the beautiful sitting room.

I couldn't help but admire, the interior was nothing like I had ever seen before, I didn't want to go further in so I dropped him on the couch

"Here we are sir, I have to go, I am running late for my appointment," I said only to get a snore in response indicating he was fast asleep. I couldn't help but smile, a moment ago he was venting and getting drunk now he is sleeping soundly like nothing happened. I saw a tiny notepad on the table and a pen, I tore out a sheet and scribbled a short message for him before I left

Getting downstairs the receptionist was still giving me the same dirty look, I couldn't care any longer so I ignored her and walked out, glancing at my watch I had barely 45 minutes to get to my next workplace which meant returning to my town. I rushed out into the busy streets of New York.

CHAPTER THREE

STEVE'S POV

I woke up with a strong migraine, I had drunk myself to a stupor yesterday night, I took a minute to glance around so I'd know where I ended up but to my surprise, I was sitting on a couch in my private suite at a hotel I owned, how did I even get here? Did I spend the night on the couch? No wonder my neck is stiff.

I swayed my neck left and right to try to ease the tension, I reached out for my phone on the side stool only to notice a note placed under my phone

I picked it up, rubbed my eyes off the sleep, and took a look at the first sentence which read "Thank you so much for last night Sir"

"Shit!! Shit!! What had I done, I may have been angry with Diana but I would never intentionally cheat on her." I murmured to myself as I threw the note back on the table, partially too scared to find out what I did in my drunk state.

Giving it a second thought and realizing that I could only handle the issue if I knew what I did, I decided to keep reading.

"I owe you for saving me from Sam's fury last night also please forgive your wife and give her a chance to explain, she must have a valid reason for what she did" I unconsciously hit my forehead

"Gosh, I told a total stranger about my wife and me, what if she decides to Google me and then tip off the media or worse blackmail me?" I scratched my hair as I dwelled in my thoughts, I picked the note up one last time determined to know what she wanted.

"I didn't take the tip of $100 as you said, I didn't want you regretting anything after you wake up, as for your car I carefully packed it at the garage opposite our bar, thank you again"

Okay, I judged her harshly, she seems like a nice person, I was vulnerable last night yet she didn't take anything, my car is worth over $50k which could change her life yet she simply drove it to a safe place and returned my keys.

My mind went to my wallet and I rushed over to the coat stand and retrieved my wallet from its pocket, I started by checking for my credit and debit cards, all were intact, I recounted the dollar notes in my wallet, it was complete, how then did she bring me home? Did she pay for the cab with her money?

I walked back to the couch and slumped into it immediately I reached it, I buried my face into my palm as I tried to fully recollect the entire night after she sat with me to keep me company, I never usually asked for escorts, I just saw her and felt drawn to her hence my request.

As if on cue, the door flew open startling me, I looked up ready to yell at whoever had my key card without my permission only to see my mother walk in as her heels made the usual "click click" sound.

She stopped in front of the couch I sat and dropped her handbag into the empty spot on the couch

"I can perceive you from a mile away, You wreck of alcohol" She slightly pinched her nose

"Nice of you to notice ma" I replied in my sarcastic tone putting a fake smile on

"When would you man up and stop settling for drinks when your mind is troubled?" I looked up at her and noticed she had relaxed her expression

"Well when everyone stops taking me for a ride" I replied putting my head down once again

"Your father noticed your absence at home last night and has been asking questions, you know how observant your father can be, I lied and said you attended a friend's party and would be back today, I knew you would be here hence my decision to come and talk to you"

"If this is you coming to tell me to leave my wife then it wouldn't happen, what she did was wrong but I am willing to hear her out and settle this issue because I love her" I scrubbed my face with my palm, and attempted to fix my hair

"So you want to remain childless for life and let the Williams Empire collapse with you?"

She sounded amused much to my displeasure, my mother only sounds this way when she has something up her sleeves

"Diana and I will adopt" I blurted out before I could hold it in

"Never, no foreign blood will set foot into my family, I promised your grandfather that I would do my best to nurture the future of this family's legacy and I will not let you and your shameless wife thwart that promise"

"I would not opt for divorce either way, I love my wife and I would do my best to fix things, can you for once let us Fucking do things like the adults we are" I was losing my temper as I scratched my hair uncontrollably

"Mind your language young man, when it comes to the issue of succession then the entire family has a say," she said with her stern voice, after a minute she relaxed and sat beside me adjusting her handbag.

"First things first, I need you to return home by the end of today"

"I am not yet ready to face Diana"

"That's none of my business unless you want me to tell your father exactly what is going on and have him transfer the company to Nathan instead of pending when you are ready"

"He wouldn't, we all know Nathan is a ticking bomb, he only married Stella and agreed to take our Last name just so he could his way into our family's fortune, if only Stella could see through him"

"Just as you couldn't see through Diana's schemes. I know about Nathan, nothing is hidden from me especially if it involves my children and the family's legacy but at least he already has a successor who happens to be my grandson with the same Williams blood running in his veins" I thought for a moment about what she said

"Moreover, the official handover ceremony is not until two days, I wouldn't want the press catching photos of you arriving at the home that day, they would make speculations and it would be disastrous for the company, Value of Shares would remotely decline, investors might pull out and the shareholders might pass a vote of no confidence" she said.

If there's one person I trust with handling situations like this, it's my mother, I knew she could fix this, my father was the CEO but it was my mother who ran the company from behind the curtains, I wanted the company, I have given it my all for almost 10 years now I couldn't imagine not being CEO.

she moved closer to me and held my palms in hers

"I will fix this trust me Son, just come home," she said looking me in the eye and I saw her concern for me as I nodded

Growing up Martha and I were always more scared of our mother than our father, she was always so strict, she would ground us and even reduce our allowance once we did something she didn't approve of, she was my father's business support though she didn't hold any office asides being the CEO's wife but her presence held fear amongst the board members and the employees, I secretly wished Diana could learn from my mum on this.

She stood up, glanced back at me, and gave a tiny smile before picking up her handbag and heading for the door, but suddenly she paused and looked back at me.

"Make sure the media doesn't catch wind of whatever you ended up doing last night. Pay off everyone who witnessed anything last night, I will take care of the staff here"

With that, she disappeared through the door. I still felt so weak, that I decided to hit the shower before heading home.